On a Sunday, ID Card Rules Are Quietly Published

Since opening our practice, we’ve told every patient we’ve seen that we’d provide them with timely updates as they occurred with respect to Florida’s medical marijuana program.

Today, without any fanfare, something big happened.

Anyone familiar with text of Amendment 2 and the state’s expanded cannabis program can tell you that implementation hinged on the creation of an ID card program. Our lawyers explained that, while the list of qualifying conditions for which a doctor can order a patient cannabis went into effect on January 3, a physician could not place the order for the medication without this ID card program being in place.

The final version of Rule #64-4.011 was published today to the Florida Register. This rule creates the medical marijuana ID card program in the state.

Here’s how it works:

Upon establishing a 90-day relationship with a patient, the ordering physician enters the patient into the existing Compassionate Use Registry. Once the patient is entered, they’re assigned a Patient Registry ID number which must be written on the front page of the application.It is important to note that currently once a patient is entered into the registry, they are able to walk into a dispensary and obtain their legal medication. Rule #1 within the newly published language states, “All patients and legal representatives are required to have a valid Compassionate Use Registry identification card to obtain low-THC cannabis, medical cannabis, or a cannabis delivery device.”Rule #7 provides, “If there is no initial order by the patient’s authorized physician at the time of the approval of the patient or legal representative’s Compassionate Use Registry identification card, the Department will provide a temporary verification email which may be printed and used, with a photo ID, to obtain low-THC cannabis, medical cannabis, or a cannabis delivery device until the patient or legal representative receives the Compassionate Use Registry identification card.” We assume an email is generated to the patient with this info when the ordering physician enters their information into the registry.

NEW PATIENT APPLICATIONS MUST INCLUDE ALL OF THE FOLLOWING:

A completed application. By providing your email address, you consent to the Department contacting you through the email address, including the provision of a temporary verification email.

A copy of your Florida driver license or Florida identification card, or other proof of residency

A $75 check or money order (application fee) made out to Florida Department of Health.

A full-face, passport-type 2×2 inches in size, color photograph taken within the 90 days immediately preceding application

A copy of the parent’s or designated legal representative’s proof of residency

The state also clearly specifies proof of residency requirements:

Patients must submit a copy of a valid Florida driver license or Florida identification card. If the patient does not possess a valid Florida driver license or Florida identification card, they may submit a copy of a utility bill in the patients’s name including a Florida address, or a Florida voter registration card. The name and address on the documents provided for residency must match the name and address in this application. For minor patients, the parent or designated legal representative must submit proof of residency of the parent or designated legal representative.

Since the state requires this ID card to receive medical cannabis, we advise every patient – even if they are still awaiting the end of their 90 day establishment period – to print out and complete the paper application. We also advise you take the application to any store that provides passport photos so you can show the people behind the counter the requirements for the ID card picture. Since these rules allow for a temporary verification until the cards are created and mailed, we would advise against sending an application into the state until your ordering physician has entered you into the registry. This could change and we will keep you up to date of all new developments.

For those patients with an already established relationship with a provider and already receiving medication, we advise for you to complete an application and send it in as soon as possible.

(1) All patients and legal representatives are required to have a valid Compassionate Use Registry identification card to obtain low-THC cannabis, medical cannabis, or a cannabis delivery device.

(2) To apply for a patient Compassionate Use Registry identification card, a person must:

(a) Be a Florida resident, as evidenced by a copy of a valid Florida driver’s license or identification card; a utility bill in the person’s name including a Florida address; or a Florida voter registration card. The name and address on the document provided for proof of residency must match the name and address provided in the application. To establish Florida residency for minor patients, proof of residency of the parent or designated legal representative must be provided;

(b) Be a qualified patient who has been added to the Compassionate Use Registry, by an authorized physician licensed under Chapter 458 or 459, F.S., to receive low-THC cannabis, medical cannabis, or a cannabis delivery device from a dispensing organization; and,

(3) To apply for a legal representative Compassionate Use Registry identification card, a person must submit DH8010-OCU-10/2016, “Compassionate Use Registry Identification Card Legal Representative Application,” which is incorporated by reference and available at http://www.flrules.org/Gateway/reference.asp?No=Ref-07856.

(4) In order for a minor patient to receive a patient Compassionate Use Registry identification card, the minor patient must reside in Florida and have a legal representative designated in his or her application and in the online Compassionate Use Registry.

(5) Each person who applies for a Compassionate Use Registry identification card shall pay a $75 application fee in the form of a check or money order payable to the Department of Health. The card shall expire one (1) year after the date of the physician’s initial order.

(6) A person who applies for a Compassionate Use Registry identification card shall have sixty (60) days from the date the department provides notice that the application is incomplete to make corrections, provide additional information or resubmit the application.

(7) If there is no initial order by the patient’s authorized physician at the time of the approval of the patient or legal representative’s Compassionate Use Registry identification card, the Department will provide a temporary verification email which may be printed and used, with a photo ID, to obtain low-THC cannabis, medical cannabis, or a cannabis delivery device until the patient or legal representative receives the Compassionate Use Registry identification card.

(8) To maintain an active Compassionate Use Registry identification card, a patient and/or legal representative must annually submit DH8009-OCU-10/2016 and/or DH8010-OCU-10/2016, along with the application fee and any required accompanying documents to the department forty-five (45) days prior to the card expiration date.

(9) When there has been a change in the patient’s name, address, or designated legal representative, that patient must notify the department within ten (10) days by submitting a completed Change, Replacement or Surrender Request, DH8012-OCU-10/2016, which is incorporated by reference and available at http://www.flrules.org/Gateway/reference.asp?No=Ref-07858, along with a $15 replacement fee in the form of a check or money order payable to the Department of Health. A patient who has not designated a legal representative at the time of application to the department may do so in writing at any time during the effective period of the patient’s registry identification card.

(10) A patient who no longer has a qualifying medical condition shall return his or her registry identification card to the department within ten (10) days of receiving such information by his or her physician along with a completed Change, Replacement or Surrender Request, DH8012-OCU-10/2016.

(11) Requests to replace a lost or stolen card will require the cardholder to submit a Change, Replacement or Surrender Request, DH8012-OCU-10/2016, along with a copy of his or her Florida driver’s license or identification card and a $15 replacement fee.

(12) The department may revoke a Compassionate Use Registry identification card for any of the following:

(a) The patient or legal representative makes material misrepresentations in his or her application;

(b) The patient uses his or her card to obtain cannabis for another individual;

(c) The legal representative uses his or her card to obtain cannabis for an individual who has not designated them as their legal representative or who is not a qualified patient;

(d) The patient or legal representative purchases, obtains, possesses, or uses cannabis not sold by an approved dispensing organization, or